Some writers have a preferred writing schedule. Do you?
Definitely. I’m a bit of a schedule nut, actually. I set aside two hours every day for my writing, usually between four and six in the afternoon. I start out with thirty minutes of “warm-ups,” which allow me to ease my mind away from the busyness of the day and into a creative place. I start out with a quick prayer, asking God to bless and direct my work, then scribble an entry in my writing journal, noting my thoughts about my current scene and planning what needs to be written that day. I read a short article about the craft, go over research and character notes, and read over what I wrote the day before. Then I choose a soundtrack to listen to and start writing.
Read the rest!
Story by K.M. Weiland
Tags: schedule
Okay, I love how you warm up first... I do the morning pages, but those are usually done hours before I find time for my WIP, so when it's time to get busy, I am once again distracted and find that I waste an hour of precious writing time without even realizing it... I think I need to restructure how I organize my writing time, and give myself time to warm up again!
Writing requires such a different mindset from the general go-go-go of the day. If I don't take a few minutes to slow down, focus, and restart the creative side of my brain, I'll be lost.
I envy you and your writing routine. I only have about an hour a day to actually work on my WIP, so I don't think I could justify using half that time for warm-ups. :(
You could implement a warm-up routine that wasn't quite as involved. Maybe even just find a song that inspires your writing and play it, focusing on calming your body and centering your mind while listening. Five minutes of warm-up leaves you fifty-five minutes to write!
I have about 25 or so playlist on my computer, each list pertains to a certain mood and a certain type of day. Of course it does help that I am a retired DJ, I can set my playlist to my mood, writing time, and writing sequence. It also helps that I have millions of songs to choose from, which brings the bad side of having to choose a 100 or so songs for a playlist out of millions. I usually set 1am-2am aside for only story crafting. That is when I am most peaceful and it helps me sleep afterwards. Though most times I will write when I have a free moment or two and still go back to my before bedtime schedule.
That is a wonderful way to write.
I wonder if I can work that into my style...
:-)
@Keivamp: One in the morning, wow! You're dedicated. I think the only thing I like better than writing is sleep. ;)
@Misha: Give it a try, and I bet you'll find it productive. Of course, the warm-up methods you develop should fit your own style and personality.
Great interview, Katie. Your name is getting out there to more and more people all the time.
Thanks for reading, Lorna!
I think I'll try the warming up first too. I love the idea of having a writing journal and writing about the scenes for the day. I never even thought of it... What an great idea!
I would count the "prep journal" as the single most important step in my warm-up. It goes a long way toward centering and organizing my thoughts for the day.
Well, I'm definitely intrigued and plan to head over to read the rest of the interview, but I'm curious about something. Does your two-hour writing time include the warmups, prayer and reading the short article? Or is that what you do before the two-hours starts? Just curious!
I include in all in my two hours of writing. Warm-ups generally take me 30 minutes.
A schedule helps to keep me on track. I treat my writing like a job, but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy it. I do! But I usually work/play more than eight hours a day. I said play because creating stories has always been fun. I do wish I could listen to music while I write. :D
Many of are slavering at the thought of eight hours a day of writing time! Kudos to you for treating it like a job. You'll go far with that attitude.
Thanks for sharing. Alwasy great to hear what other writers do. I try to write M-F 12-3 but life oftens gets in the way and that doesn't happen. I can put out lots of words over several days and then not write for days.
Having a schedule is definitely my personal alpha omega! I even blog a bit about it here:
http://rblindberg.blogspot.com/2011/01/new-week-new-old-writing-schedule.html :-)
@Kym: I tell writers they need to "write every day," but what I really mean is that they need to find a schedule that works for them and stick to it relentlessly. For some people, the optimum schedule has to allow more flexibility, because their creativity demands it.
@RB: Thanks for the link. I don't think I've visited your blog, so I'll go take a look!